The Right Road

On Thursday morning I set about my day, took the bus, listened to John Mayer's Heavier Things, picked up the morning newspaper, took my morning coffee and walked the walk to class. It was like any other day, or so I thought. I would go to the gym after classes had finished, certainly.

My day took its first turn upon second period of the day being cancelled. It's amazing, I thought, how your day can change just like that, leaving you to make a quick decision as to what you will do with your newly free time. Life is just like that--twists and turns in the road, and every so often, a set of crossroads. There is always a number of options at these times, and ultimately, as adults, we make the decision as to which road we will take by ourselves.

Decision-making can be tough, and sometimes I wish there was an instructor to inform me of the difficulties I might run into along each road, to allow me to weigh up the pros and cons of each. No such instructor exists - except for the one in our own minds. Sometimes we will regret the decisions that we have made in the past, but as everyone knows, mistakes must be made to learn from them. But who is to say which road is right and which one is wrong?

I decided, the road to the cinema was the one that I would take. My college friend and I decided that we would indulge in a day time movie, and what better than the new Renee Zellweger. The mutual feeling was that this was most certainly the right road to take for the day. Following the movie, we embarked on some window-shopping, wondering why, at sale time, do purchases seem so much less special.

The attention of the sales clerk is not on you, but on the piles of sweaters needing re-folding, and the small but meaningful details--tissue wrap and ribbon--have all been ignored, and in their place you will find your purchases in a red bag with 'SALE' emblazoned on either side, which is anything but meaningful.

Following our shopping experience, I pondered my next hour. I decided, I would miss my usual bus home--for what had been usual about the day?--and visit the gym instead. After my workout, I shared a moment of small (well, microscopic), chat with a fellow member in the changing room. It seemed for a moment, as if we might be friends. It seemed for a moment, as if it might have been fate.

That day, I learned to trust my instinct, and to always do what feels right to me, for it might just lead me down the right road.